Friday, May 21, 2010

Brandonio @ Rock Is Dead R.I.P. (http://rockisdeadrip.blogspot.com/) treated us all to our first introduction to this Brisbane based group of musicians a few months ago. Today I'd like to share their new video with an additional 2 tracks from their For Five Nights Only CD.

Hitting on all five cylinders they pay homage to some of the masters, Link Wray with (Mustn't) Grumble and StingRay, space-age twang with Theme From Burger Force (The Suffering Bastard), the fuzzed out sounds on 2000lb Bee Part 2, and some low-key reverb tunes like Midnight at Charlie and Big Bird and major tip-of-the-hat to Mr Dale with Miseri Loves Company. Since their credo is "Five shows and we're out of here" make sure to catch em if you can. If not, you can pick-up this fine CD/Vinyl combo HERE and enjoy them forever. Check out their site, give them some props and maybe we can convince them to reconsider their "green flash" moment and put out some more tunes. Drop by HERE

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Ssssh was Ten Years After's new release at the time of their incendiary performance at the Woodstock Festival in August, 1969. As a result, it was their first hit album in the U.S., peaking at number 20 in September of that year. This recording is a primer of British blues-rock of the era, showcasing Alvin Lee's guitar pyrotechnics and the band's propulsive rhythm section. As with most of TYA's work, the lyrics were throwaways, but the music was hot. Featured is a lengthy cover of Sonny Boy Williamson's "Good Morning Little Schoolgirl," with reworked lyrics leaving little doubt as to what the singer had in mind for the title character. Also included was a 12-bar blues song with the ultimate generic blues title "I Woke Up This Morning." Ssssh marked the beginning of the band's two-year run of popularity on the U.S. album charts and in the underground FM-radio scene.

Saturday, May 15, 2010

Not exactly the most glowing review, mainly criticizing the production and several hazy facts in the liner notes. It does acknowledge that it is a very passable chance to hear some of the limited options there are to hear this great band live. Get it while you can. Marc and the boys do Rock.

Review by Dave Thompson

Prior to the long-delayed release of the Born to Boogie soundtrack album, T. Rex were never treated to a truly stellar live recording, one that not only captured the incandescent energy of their concert performances, but also did so in a reasonably listen-able fashion. It is almost as if the only people with the foresight to record the band at its height were the ones with tickets for row Z -- which they'd lost en route to the venue, so they taped the gig from the street outside. Electric Boogie is another addition to that sorry roll call, although in fairness it is a vast improvement on many of the releases out there. Excerpts from four shows revolve around T. Rex's summer 1971 tour of the U.K. and Europe -- the period, that is, immediately after the singles "Ride a White Swan," "Hot Love," and "Get It On." Included are six medium-fidelity tracks from the Rotterdam show, plus two cuts apiece from Bournemouth, Lewisham, and Wolverhampton, with the first named unquestionably highlighted by a nine-minute rendition of "Ride a White Swan" -- and, if you're wondering how a simple three-minute pop song can be so elongated, remember Bolan's guitar-playing skills weren't limited to the brusque, choppy chords that highlighted his studio work. "Elemental Child," from the Wolverhampton gig, makes the same point less surprisingly. If there is any downside to this set, it is that the packaging is utterly misleading, conveying the impression that the recordings hail from another show that summer, the legendary Weeley Festival bash. Both the cover photo and Bill Legend's liner notes abet the deception, although truthfully such details probably matter only to the most committed collectors. For everyone else, a rare chance to hear (and even enjoy) T. Rex at their live peak is simply too good to pass up.

Thursday, May 13, 2010

Ruiko was influenced from Trashmen. Naomi was from Dick Dale.Since 1999, we started with other woman drummer. Yuta joined it in 2003. He wear woman's disguise at the start. However, he entreated it, and it was dressed like a man!2003,we joined GOGGLE-A's 'SAZANAMI LABEL' comp CD.2004, Phill Dirt 'Reverb Central' gave "SURF OPERA 4 stars.2006,we release new CD 'THE WHYS Sanjo!'

Friday, May 07, 2010

Surf Cinema is an instrumental-soundtrack band and a collage of surf, beach party, spy movie, car crash, western, sitcom, kitsch, and clay-mation clips to project live on stage behind the band to form "Surf Cinema". It's a slight twist from traditional surf and a bit more visually entertaining.

The band has shared the stage with Dick Dale, The Red Elvises, and many other bands up and down the west coast.

Heter, baring a nickname derived from a drunken Newfoundlander, hails from Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He has played in many successful cover and indie bands across the country for that last 15+ years.

Aaron, has been a staple Bay Area musician for more than 15 years playing bass and drums for the likes of Chug, Sinister Sam and The Floppy Rods. He also manages one of the more popular local music stores and runs a spectacular 48 track-recording studio. Ironically, Aaron was sitting in when our original drummer needed to sit out a few weeks. The chemistry was too good to stop!

Jim, our bass player has also been a Bay Area mainstay with bands Leghound, JTS and The Floppy Rods. He can also play guitar, clean your pool, size you for a helmet and let you drink him under the table.

We are very good friends in and out of the music which makes the perfect formula for a great band.

After the gentler vibes of the effervescent Paint It Red, the Mighty Diamonds now offer up much punchier fare with Speak the Truth. From the opening punch of "Knock Knock," there's no reining the trio in. It's equally evident they're determined to mix things up as much as possible. The gorgeous "Hey Mommy" is doo wop with a kick, with Fitzroy Simpson beautifully handling the lead vocals. Lloyd Ferguson takes center stage on "This Time," his incandescent falsetto hovering over the sweet melody. That number conjures up the marvels of Smokey Robinson & the Miracles; "Knock," delivered up ska-style, hints at the Wailers; while "Why" returns the group to its own roots, as it offers up a sizzling variation on its own classic, "Why Me Black Brother Why"; "Planet Earth" is also revisited, in sparkling, upbeat fashion, under the title "Live in Love." There's a flood of coursing new numbers -- slamming dancehall pieces served straight-up or flavored with driving reggae; perky, percolating keyboard melodies; or seething with Dean Fraser and Clive "Azul" Hunt's superb brass. Self-producing the set themselves, the trio ensures that the entire set sparkles. Donald Shaw's performances shimmer and shine, while his bandmates' harmonies glitter and soar. The sleeve notes provide song lyrics, a quick career run-down, and boast an interview with Simpson explaining each track's theme and how the number came to be written. A modern classic.

No Alternative, Sweet Relief and Home Alive: The road to alternative compilations is paved with good intentions.

It's been a standard practice for years -- a bunch of artists come together to record a compilation album to benefit some organization. What most lack, though, is a cohesive theme.

Enter Music For Our Mother Ocean, a compilation benefiting the Surfrider Foundation and, ultimately, our oceans and beaches. Where most compilations coast through with throw-away B-sides by well-known artists, MOM hangs ten with a collection of surf-influenced covers and originals.

If you like punk-tinged surf music, you'll probably like the album. But if you're looking for standard fare from the artists therein, you might be very surprised. For instance, Pearl Jam rips up "Gremmie Out Of Control," a cover of some lost surf-garage single from the '60s. With its rapid surf guitar licks and low-fidelity recording quality, the song sounds nothing like what one usually expects from alterna-rock's reigning band.

The Ramones turn in a cover of "California Sun" that's more true to the band's place in punk's old school, while Pennywise secures its place with a cover of "Surfin' U.S.A." that's hyper-fast and overdriven.

But the most successful songs are the originals. Soundgarden's "My Wave," off the group's 1994 album Superunknown, takes '50s surf and mixes it with the band's metallic crunch to create a more successful homage to the genre. Everclear does much the same with the hardcore-ish "Hateful."

Only a few times on the album does the pace slow. But when it does, the results are pleasant. On the acoustic and slow-moving "Bali Eyes," Porno For Pyros conveys images of Tiki gods and a cool breeze blowing over a tropical beach. Jewel trades in her usual down-to-earth lyrics for a tale of a man and woman who talk to wolves and listen to how the sky sings in the gentle "Quiet Warrior."

The Beastie Boys turn in the album's most interesting track: over a lounge-jazz shuffle beat, the Boys sing in their best Frankie Valli soprano on "Netty's Girl."

Overall, MOM isn't a great collection of tracks like No Alternative or Sweet Relief. Some of the songs are interesting stretches by alternative bands, although wading through all 23 songs probably isn't worth the effort.PATRICK KASTNER

A long time ago in a galaxy far away there was a band called Midnight Oil that was a really big deal for Australian rock audiences. Particularly audiences with a leaning towards all things surfing. Then there was a crack in the reality vortex and Midnight Oil disappeared, and in its place there was suddenly a tall, bald guy hanging around with Kevin Rudd. Weird, huh?

It’s taken a few years , but finally the old reality vortex has spun back to earth and out has tumbled The Break, and music-loving surfers are back in business.

During their years in the wilderness, Oilers Jim Moginie, Rob Hirst and Martin Rotsey have kept busy with solo releases and collaborative projects (including the Angry Tradesmen, stonking it up on the 2006 Delightful Rain production that kicked open the surf music floodgates for the Bombora Creative label). Then in 2009, two events took place which suggest that the blind hand of destiny is in fact guided by a force that likes loud twang and a big beat. Firstly, Jim Moginie opened up his Oceanic recording studio and started wondering what kind of mischief he could get up to with his old bandmates. And around the same time, the three Sydney guys reconnected with Brian Ritchie - the bass player from the Violent Femmes - an old mucker from their international touring days.

An informal jam soon escalated into a set of take-no-prisoners recording sessions, and now Church of the Open Sky is ready to attract the faithful. The original premise might have been to recreate that classic sixties surf sound, but along the way it’s mutated into something more muscular and interesting. The traditional elements are in place – Fender Jazzmasters, whammy bars, tube amps with lashings of reverb and tremolo and rolling tom toms galore. Add in Ritchie’s rippy bass, a bit of sci-fi stylophone, a dash of Gregorian chanting... hey, it’s Wipeout in Space. In 3D.

There are the full-tilt rockers like Cylinders, Five Rocks and Massacres (most of the songs are named after surf breaks. Which is good.) Or the lowest common denominator workouts like Birdman or Groynewhich would make Link Wray sound pretentious. There’s the cataclysmic grandeur of Winkipop, the widescreen atmosphere of Blasket Islands, the Pet Sounds styling of Mystics and the general loopiness of S.Q.U.I.D.and Oyster Stomp. And then there’s Phobos-Grunt – think Pink Floyd meets Sandy Nelson at Twin Peaks. Yes, something for everybody.

Most obvious of all, though, is the sound of a bunch of really good musicians having a lot of fun. Midnight Oil was one of the most inspiringly powerful acts you could ever hope to experience. With the Break, Moginie, Hirst, Rotsey and Ritchie revive the power to propel their crackpot surf tunes into another dimension.

Church of the Open Sky is released on 16 April. The Break has already hit the road and will be supporting the release with some selected live dates including the Byron Bluesfest. Be worth seeing.Ian Cameron

Wednesday, May 05, 2010

The Seven Degrees of Stephen Egerton is a result of Stephen’s need for a creative outlet while his main bands, influential pop-punkers Descendents and ALL, are on hiatus. He had been writing songs, recording bands, and mixing and mastering albums at his Tulsa, OK studio, Armstrong Recording, when his wife suggested that he ask some friends to sing and finish the songs. After writing all the songs, playing all the instruments, and recording the music on his own, he enlisted a number of punk vocalists to write lyrics and sing. Vocals were recorded all across the country at different studios with a number of engineers, and then mixed and mastered by Egerton, resulting in consistent audio quality. Guests vocalists on the album include bandmates Chad Price and Scott Reynolds (All), Dr. Milo Aukerman (Descendents), Tim McIlrath (Rise Against), Chris DeMakes (Less Than Jake), Dan Andriano (Alkaline Trio), Joey Cape (Lagwagon), Mike Herrera (MxPx), Mark Vecchiarelli (Shades Apart), and more.

ALTERNATIVE PRESS recently reviewed the album, and hit the nail on the head by stating “Stephen Egerton... wrote the book on pop-punk. It's that fact, backed up by Egerton's wealth of songwriting skills and penchant for off-kilter guitar riffs that make The Seven Degrees Of Stephen Egerton such an amazing listen... The Seven Degrees Of Stephen Egerton is the sound of a triumphant return from one of punk's most respected, rarely mimicked, and never gimmicky personalities, and a fitting epilogue should Descendents/ALL decide to throw in the towel for good.”

The Seven Degrees of Stephen Egerton is out May 11th on Paper + Plastick Records, and will be released digitally, on CD and vinyl, in the label’s traditional fashion.

GoHEREand HERE for a little taste. Well worth the time to check it out.